Turning frustration into motivation

October 17, 2013

For weeks, OFA supporters rallied across the country to end the Tea Party shutdown. On Day 15 of the shutdown—two days before the country could have hit the debt ceiling— we gathered outside of Speaker Boehner’s district office in West Chester, Ohio to make sure he knew where his constituents stood. We were feeling many emotions at this rally, including frustration, but most of all we were motivated.

We were frustrated by the fact that this manufactured crisis even happened in the first place—but we were motivated to get up and make our voices heard. More than 50 people showed up to our “honk & wave” rally, and about half of them had never attended an OFA event before. There were even a few people who, after driving by, pulled over and grabbed a sign to join us.

Duane Moore and his 9-year-old son, Dominic, attended the rally together, before heading off to finish homework. Dominic jumped right in the front row of supporters with his sign and began chanting away: “End the shutdown.” Duane was motivated to be there because wanted his voice to be heard and felt. "Naiveté or not," he explained, "[democracy] is still the best system in the world as long as we have the courage and determination to use it. I want my son to understand this now.”

That's what a rally looks like.

Now that the government is open again, it's time for our country to come together and start solving real problems. Join the movement that will keep the pressure on Congress to work on the agenda Americans voted for in 2012.